Elegy of Tang Dynasty

Chapter 737 Rain and Snow Are Coming
The cold winter is approaching step by step, and the temperature is dropping little by little.

Since the destruction of the Diaojishan Water Fort, the Bianzhou Army has withdrawn its forces and abandoned Duchang County. The main force of the army is stationed at Hukou, and the fortress is cleared. This place is a fortress east of Xunyang, separated from Xunyang City by a very narrow lake channel, which just blocks the waterway from Poyang Lake to the Yangtze River.

The two places can support each other, and you can see the situation on the opposite side by standing on the arrow tower.

In view of the signs that the Bianzhou army was retreating, Yu Qi wrote a letter to the court, suggesting that the army march north to Duchang County to further threaten Xunyang.

Then a few days later...he was transferred.

Of course, Yu Qi was not transferred because he was guilty.

On the contrary, Li Lu saw the merits of the Battle of Diaoji Mountain. He believed that Yu Qi was indeed capable and could do things, so he transferred him back to Xiangyang to clean up Lu Qi's mess.

If you have the ability, you should use it more and reuse it. It’s such a simple logic.

Li Yu thought that Lu Qi would do something big, but he actually did something big, and the stench spread for hundreds of miles. When the news of the "great victory" at Diaoji Mountain reached Xiangyang, Li Yu was overjoyed, and this news indirectly saved Lu Qi's life.

Otherwise, Li Lu's exile of his entire family was a special favor, and he might have directly hung them on street lamps to appease the public anger.

In order to save the escalating strike in the prefectures of Jingxiang, Li Lu transferred Yu Qi back to Xiangyang and appointed him as the Minister of Revenue to take charge of the aftermath. Lu Qi was demoted to the governor of Tangzhou and sent to the prefecture capital of Biyang to take up his post.

This place borders Henan and faces the sharp edge of the Bianzhou army, and there is no natural barrier to defend. Li Lu's move was to put Lu Qi on the fire, and he might have intended to use the Bianzhou army to get rid of Lu Qi.

This is the temper of this "Son of Heaven".

A person with high emotional intelligence would say that he values ​​performance over qualifications, while a person with low emotional intelligence would say that he is mean and ungrateful.

No matter who it is, if they can do a good job, then go for it;

If you can't do it well, then get out;
If the impact is too bad, street lights will be installed.

As for Yan Zhenqing, Li Lu still did not use him. Now, Li Lu had lost trust in Yan Zhenqing, or it could be said that he was afraid of his reputation and did not dare to use him.

The less prestigious the emperor was, the more he feared people like Yan Zhenqing. Yan Zhenqing in Fang Chongyong's life was also feared by the immoral and incompetent Emperor Dezong of Tang, and was never reused.

In Li Lu's view, Lu Qi's messing up was one thing, but reusing Yan Zhenqing was another. Lu Qi was a tool to suppress Yan Zhenqing, and if this tool was no longer suitable, he could just replace it with another one, which was not a big deal.

Yan Zhenqing, who was wholeheartedly working for Li Lu, was unaware of the pros and cons of the situation.

In Li Lu's view, Yan Zhenqing's loyalty to the Tang Dynasty is evident to all, and there is no need to doubt it. However, if this person replaced the emperor, for example, by letting the crown prince succeed to the throne in advance, he could also be said to be loyal to the Tang Dynasty.

There are too many ways to manipulate this kind of thing, and no one dares to talk about it publicly. Fear is not something that is mentioned on the lips, but is deeply engraved in the heart.

Ten days later, Yu Qi returned to Xiangyang. It was already frost-covered in the early morning, and the freezing period of the rivers and streams was approaching. Yu Qi did not think much about it, as he was more assured of the situation in Poyang Lake, because according to local fishermen, this year should be a warm winter and Poyang Lake would not freeze.

Therefore, the naval superiority of the Jingxiang Army (as he believed) still existed. He just didn't know who his successor would be and whether he could work well with Liang Chongyi.

Yu Qi cleared his mind of distracting thoughts and came to the Zichen Hall. Li Lu was still reviewing memorials. He looked frowned and worried.

He didn't say anything, and Yu Qi didn't say anything either. They just waited quietly by the side.

"My dear Yu, I summoned you back to Xiangyang not to hold you accountable for the Battle of Poyang Lake. You have done a great job, and I am very pleased."

After a long time, Li Lu put down his brush and sighed. He asked Yu Qi to sit opposite him and ordered the eunuch to serve a pot of wine. After Yu Qi sat down, Li Lu pushed the thick stack of memorials sent by Yan Zhenqing in front of Yu Qi.

"My dear, take a look first."

Li Yu said calmly.

Yu Qi nodded and began to look through the memorials Yan Zhenqing had submitted in recent days, almost one a day without interruption. Yu Qi was secretly amazed and admired Yan Zhenqing's perseverance, although he was not optimistic about his actions being able to impress Li Yu.

No one touched the wine on the table. The scent of sandalwood around me was also vague, and my nose got used to it.

As he slowly flipped through the memorials, Yu Qi's brows furrowed more and more tightly, as if he had something to say, but in the end he didn't say it.

Yu Qi finally finished reading the thick stack of memorials. Li Yu looked at Yu Qi with burning eyes and asked expectantly, "What do you think, my dear?"

Not much!
Yu Qi was so angry that he almost cursed. If the person in front of him was not the emperor, he would have smashed the wine glass in his face.

Look at what kind of shit this is!
It’s better to just rob it!
"Your Majesty, this matter is a bit troublesome. I am afraid that with my humble ability, it will be difficult to handle it well."

Yu Qi said cautiously.

Hearing this, Li Lu's face froze and the smile on his face became unnatural.

"My dear, is there really nothing you can do?"

Li Lu asked, seeming unwilling to give up.

Yu Qi nodded and said, "Perhaps others have a solution, but I am limited in my ability and cannot think of a solution. I really do not dare to disappoint your majesty's trust, let alone delay state affairs, so I dare not take on this important task. Please withdraw your majesty's appointment. I am unable to serve as the Minister of Revenue to handle this matter."

"Well, I'll find someone else to deal with it. My dear, you haven't been home for a long time. You haven't been home since you rushed back to Xiangyang from Poyang Lake. Go home now and take a look."

Li Lu waved his hand tiredly and said.

He was really troubled. He finally saw a glimmer of hope and saw that Yu Qi was still a talented person, so he wanted him to come back and clean up the mess.

Unexpectedly, Yu Qi refused to take on this responsibility at all!
If a cow doesn't want to drink water, you can't force it to drink. Yu Qi doesn't want to do anything, so even if you force him to take care of this matter, it will not really solve the problem.

Li Lu did not make things difficult for Yu Qi, but simply allowed him to go home for a "paid vacation."

The emperor's appointment is not so easy to refuse. If you dare not accept the order, you will definitely pay the price.

It is inevitable that your career will be affected.

Yu Qi walked out of the Purple Palace with a lot on his mind and looked up at the sky.

At this moment, the sky was already gloomy and gloomy, and it was obvious that rain and snow were about to come. At this moment, Yu Qi suddenly had a bad premonition in his heart.

There are powerful enemies outside and treacherous ministers inside;
The ruler is incompetent and all businesses are in decline.

This doesn't seem right!

Yu Qi suddenly felt that it was time to find a way out. Otherwise, the future would be worrying.

……

The autumn fog was like silk soaked in milk, entwining the bend of the Baigou River. At this moment, this natural canal had frozen over, so it was naturally impossible to sail. The thin layer of ice on the river surface would create a hole if people or animals stepped on it.

A merchant named Chen Yanzong led a caravan from Juye Lake to Bianzhou for business. His cowhide boots sank into the icy mud, and dozens of ox carts behind him left winding tracks. A team of more than a hundred people, accompanied by the ox carts, headed west along the direction of Baigou. Some people rested in the ox cart sheds, and worked in two shifts to travel.

The ox carts were not filled with ordinary goods, but with things that could start a fire, including flaming oil. These things would be used to ignite several major ferry crossings in Bianzhou during the Lantern Festival, creating chaos.

If successful, the situation of the court in Bianzhou would be completely changed. No, it should be said that the situation of the whole world might be reversed.

Chen Yanzong wiped the frost on his curly beard, and kept his right hand on the sword at his waist. This kind of sword can be seen everywhere in the market of Bianzhou, and anyone can buy it. But the calluses on this man's palms showed that his origin was not ordinary, at least not as simple as a merchant.

The ox cart crushed the ice chips, making a "creaking" sound, which made everyone in the team drowsy.

At this moment, in the reed marsh where the reeds had long been frozen into ice branches, a group of wild ducks suddenly flew away in fright.

The sound of bowstrings vibrating tore through the fog from that direction, and arrows flew towards the caravan.

The moment the first arrow pierced through the cowhide canopy, Chen Yanzong had already cautiously hid behind a board. The four-sided arrowheads formed a rain of iron in the morning light, and the sound of them piercing the elm board was like the sound of a hundred 俠鼓s, which almost cost him his life.

However, the others did not have his skills. Screams came one after another, and many people had no time to dodge and were hit by arrows, falling to the ground and wailing.

In the woods on the north side of the road, dozens of lightly armored cavalrymen rushed out with thunderous hooves, as fast as lightning.

The leader was a burly man, and where the cold light of his lance swept past, three men who were driving ox carts together in an attempt to form a battle line were cut in half like straw.

A flash of blood!
"Form a circle!"

Chen Yanzong's roar was nailed into the mud by the arrows. He was hit by an arrow in the shoulder and blood was pouring out. Everyone in the team was wearing armor, but no one would walk in armor during the march. When the body temperature drops, the armor will freeze to the skin and flesh, and taking off the armor will tear off a layer of skin.

No fool would seek trouble for himself. Because of this, they suffered a great loss in this raid!
In theory, the route from Juye Lake to Bianzhou was very safe. Not to mention groups of bandits, even scattered thieves were rare, because the Bianzhou court often sent people to inspect the canal.

They regarded the canal as the lifeline of their economy, so naturally they would not allow bandits to destroy the shipping routes, including the land routes along the canal.

Chen Yanzong's heart sank. He realized that something big had happened!

Dozens of men who survived the rain of arrows overturned the cargo boxes, revealing round shields with mottled paint, and began to form a formation to resist.

Outside the dense forest on the east bank of the river, a red flag was suddenly erected, with four words written on it that frightened many people: Silver Spear Filial Piety!
A team of one hundred crossbowmen, each holding a horn crossbow, was divided into three rows and shot in turns.

When Chen Yanzong saw the words on the opposite side's flag through the gap between the shields, he was so frightened that his steps went limp and he almost fell to the ground!
As a former soldier, he naturally understood the weight of these four words.

An unlucky man beside him was hit by an arrow and fell to the ground, but someone else immediately took his place. Everyone in the caravan understood that they were just fighting desperately. The tactics and skills of the opposing army were overwhelmingly superior to theirs, no less than a strong man beating a child.

When the fourth wave of arrows came, the shield was already full of barbed wolf-tooth arrows, so heavy that it was almost impossible to hold it.

Suddenly, a round pottery jar was thrown into the circle, igniting a huge flame. After holding on for a long time, the already shaky circle suddenly collapsed, and the men in the caravan subconsciously avoided the flames and scattered. The team of light cavalry took advantage of this time to rush over and engage in a one-sided fight!

Finished!

Two words popped up in Chen Yanzong's mind and his vision suddenly turned: that was caused by his head being chopped off and rolling on the ground.

After an incense stick of time, all the people in the caravan were killed, except for a fair-skinned young man who was shivering in the ox cart and was taken out.

"General He, this guy has nothing underneath, he's a eunuch."

A soldier reported to the indifferent He Changqi with a fist clasped, with a playful smile on his face.

"Are you Huo Xianming?"

He Changqi asked in a cold voice. Seeing that the other party did not answer, he asked again: "What is in the ox cart?"

Seeing that this person didn't answer, He Changqi became angry.

He frowned slightly and ordered his men: "The government said to bring the man back, but did not say to bring him back intact. Cut off his hands and feet, then stop the bleeding, and return to Bianzhou for the government to interrogate. I am too lazy to bother with it."

Hearing this, Huo Xianming was frightened to death!

He had no doubt that the soldier opposite him was definitely capable of doing such a thing!

Huo Xianming immediately knelt on the ground and kowtowed, saying, "General He, I am indeed Huo Xianming. The car is full of flammable objects, used to burn the Bianzhou ferry. This is the emperor's order, and I am only following orders. Don't chop off my hands and feet!"

The reserve he had just shown was completely gone. At this moment, Huo Xianming was kneeling on the ground, like a wild dog wagging its tail to beg for mercy.

Haha, that’s how submissive people are. They don’t understand when you say nice things to them, but they will confess everything when you threaten them.

He Changqi was disdainful in his heart, but he just yelled:
"Someone, tie him up and send him back to Bianzhou!"

After Huo Xianming was taken away, He Changqi walked to one of the carriages of the ox carts and immediately pulled open the curtains. All he saw were things that could start a fire, as well as some armor, shields and other contraband.

And...the pungent smell of gunpowder!

He couldn't help but gasp.

If these things were brought into Bianzhou and started to cause a commotion during the Lantern Festival, it would be hard to imagine how big a scene it would cause. You know, there is a gunpowder workshop in Bianzhou. If these flaming oils were lit in the gunpowder workshop, the scene would be so beautiful that He Changqi couldn't even imagine it.

Besides, these fire starters are very valuable and it takes a lot of effort to collect them. It is obvious that Li Wei has put a lot of thought into it and is also preparing to have a big fun on the Lantern Festival.

He was quite careful in his work, but Li Wei didn't know that most of the time, extreme silence was the last bit of forbearance before the storm.

The emperor who didn't even get angry when his son died and didn't even curse him must have prepared a devastating backup plan. How could this not alert people?

How could Fang Chongyong be unprepared?
"The government is probably going to change the emperor."

He Changqi muttered to himself.

His political sense was not very sharp, but he knew Fang Zhongyong's character very well.

Li Wei was preparing to start a fire in Bianzhou, which was a real suicide, and had crossed Fang Zhongyong's bottom line. Sending them on their way, it seemed they couldn't escape.

I'm afraid this year's Lantern Festival will be filled with blood and killing.

He Changqi sighed. This is what a puppet emperor is like. It’s such a fucking trouble. Why doesn’t the emperor ascend the throne yet?

He felt annoyed and was thinking about how to help Fang Chongyong get promoted faster.

If there were a change of dynasty, there wouldn't be the trouble we have now.

How cool!

(End of this chapter)